St. Eulogius of Córdoba

St. Eulogius of Córdoba was a priest and scholar of Córdoba in Muslim-ruled Spain in the ninth century, of a devout Christian family. Learned in the Scriptures and the Fathers and skilled in Latin letters, he became a leading figure among the Christians, or Mozarabs, who lived under Islamic rule, and a teacher and encourager of the faithful in a time when open profession of Christ could bring death.

His age saw the movement of the "Martyrs of Córdoba," numbers of Christians who were put to death for publicly professing their faith or refusing to embrace Islam, and Eulogius became their chronicler and defender, writing an Exhortation to Martyrdom and a record of their sufferings to strengthen the faithful and honor the fallen. Chosen archbishop of Toledo, though he could not take up the see amid the troubles, he was himself arrested for sheltering a young convert girl and, refusing to deny his faith, was beheaded on 11 March 859. Venerated as a martyr of Córdoba, his memory is kept on 11 March.